"Captain, the intel was spot-on. This kid with the two swords is definitely a threat to the kingdom!" one of Dalton's subordinates reported, standing at attention.
"And what about the kid with the hat?" Dalton asked, gesturing towards Law.
The soldiers all shook their heads, clearly clueless about Law's origins.
Dalton remained silent for a moment. He didn't really want to apprehend Takumi and Law. After all, he hadn't seen Takumi's supposed powers firsthand and wasn't sure if the kid could really crush bullets with his bare hands.
Wapol hadn't been King of Drum Kingdom for long, but he had already introduced a slew of unfair decrees that had made life miserable for the people. Anything or anyone that posed even a slight threat to Wapol was immediately targeted for elimination, no questions asked.
Even if these kids had no intention of destroying Drum Island or opposing him, Wapol would still order them to be driven out or killed.
"You two should leave," Dalton finally said, his voice tinged with reluctance. "Leave Drum Island right now, and I'll make sure that innkeeper stays safe."
Law glanced over at Takumi, waiting for his reaction.
Takumi remained silent and began walking forward.
The surrounding soldiers quickly aimed their rifles at Takumi.
Takumi ignored them and walked right past Dalton.
Law chuckled and followed Takumi, matching his pace as they headed toward the castle in the distance.
Dalton watched, stunned, as Takumi walked by him, turning to watch the two boys as they approached the castle.
The soldiers kept their guns trained on Takumi and Law, maintaining a cautious distance of about two meters.
When Takumi finally reached the castle gates, they swung open from within.
Out stepped a rotund, ugly man with deep purple hair and a massive mouth. His jaw rested on a cylindrical chin guard, and he wore a white cape made of armor plates and tin. The man was seated atop a large, dim-witted creature known as Robson, a woolly hippo, surrounded by a throng of soldiers.
This man was none other than Wapol, the tyrant king of Drum Island.
Wapol, also known as "White Iron," was a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit user with the powers of the Munch-Munch Fruit. This fruit allowed him to eat anything and integrate whatever he consumed into his body or combine it into something new. He could even eat himself, slimming down after digesting his own body and spitting himself back out.
In theory, the Munch-Munch Fruit's abilities were incredibly powerful. But in the hands of someone as incompetent as Wapol, those abilities were wasted.
"Hm? What's this? Two little brats?" Wapol sneered, glaring down at Takumi and Law from his perch atop Robson. He couldn't be bothered to figure out which one was the threat. "Ahahaha, doesn't matter who you are! You're here now, and you're not leaving!"
Wapol clapped his hands, and his soldiers dragged out the innkeeper, his hands bound behind his back.
"Listen up, kid! If you don't want this guy to die, you'd better stand there and not move a muscle," Wapol snarled. "Soldiers! Take out those two brats! Ahahaha! Once they're dead, there'll be no one left to challenge me in this kingdom! Ahahaha!"
The innkeeper's eyes widened in panic when he saw Takumi had actually come. "Kid, run! Don't worry about me! You're too young to die here!"
Takumi's expression remained cold as he locked eyes with Wapol.
Wapol's soldiers quickly surrounded Takumi and Law, rifles trained on them.
Law smirked, raising his hand to create a ROOM that encompassed everyone around them.
"You don't need to lift a finger. I can handle these clowns," Law said, his voice confident. In the blink of an eye, he vanished.
Wapol's soldiers blinked in shock.
"Huh? Where did that kid with the hat go?"
"Did he just disappear?"
As the soldiers gaped in confusion, Law suddenly reappeared behind several of them. With a swift motion, he activated his technique, Scalpel, and sliced off their arms and legs.
"My arms! My legs!" one soldier screamed.
"I'm done for… I'm gonna die! Wait… I'm still alive?"
"Oh God, he's a monster! That kid's a monster! Run for your lives!"
The remaining soldiers, those still intact, turned tail and ran in every direction.
But they were still trapped within Law's ROOM, and none of them could match his speed. Before any of them could escape the space, Law had already caught up, reducing the entire guard to a pile of dismembered yet living bodies.
"What the—?" Wapol's eyes bulged in shock. "What kind of power is this? It's terrifying!"
Law chuckled darkly. "Don't worry, you're next."
Expanding his ROOM, Law trapped Wapol within it.
With another quick move, Law appeared right in front of the king.
Wapol's face twisted in fear, but before he could even think to flee, Law had already sliced him into countless pieces.
"Your Majesty! Are you alright?" Wapol's remaining soldiers shouted, panicking.
Law let out a small laugh and returned to Takumi's side. "These worthless grunts were a joke."
Takumi continued walking forward, ignoring the chaos behind him.
Just then, Dalton, having transformed into a massive black bull using his Ox-Ox Fruit, blocked Takumi and Law's path.
"I don't want to fight you," Dalton said, his expression grim. "But as the Captain of the Royal Guard, I have a duty to protect the king, no matter how incompetent he may be. Leave this country now, or I'll have no choice but to stop you!"
Takumi didn't break his stride, not even acknowledging Dalton's words.
Just as when they had come up the mountain, Takumi brushed past Dalton as if he weren't even there.
As Takumi neared him, Dalton let out a roar, his reluctance giving way to duty, and charged at Takumi, hoping to knock him down with sheer force.
But as Dalton closed in, Takumi easily dodged each of his attacks. When Takumi was within just a few meters of the innkeeper, and Dalton was still relentlessly attacking, Takumi finally made his move.
With one swift strike, Takumi's hand connected with Dalton's chest, sending the guard captain flying back a dozen meters.
The black coating of Armament Haki slowly receded from Takumi's hand as he approached the soldiers holding the innkeeper.
He didn't even need to say a word.
Terrified, the soldiers' knees buckled, and they quickly released the rope binding the innkeeper, stumbling backward in fear.
Takumi calmly untied the innkeeper.
As the ropes fell away, the innkeeper's expression was a mix of awe and disbelief. "Takumi… did you really just send Captain Dalton flying with a single hit? My God, is it true what they've been saying? Are you really that strong?"
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